The Red Hat
Society is the result of the fortuitous melding of an imaginative
poem and a lady with imagination. The poem is "Warning" by Jenny Joseph and the
lady is Sue Ellen Cooper. Jenny Joseph's poem is about a woman approaching
middle age and looking foreword to a more eccentric lifestyle.

The Warning

When I am an old woman I shall wear
purple

With a red hat which doesn't go, and doesn't suit me

And I shall spend my pension on brandy and summer gloves

And satin sandals, and say we've no money for butter.

Sue Ellen Cooper bought a red hat for a friend, then another
and, after reading "Warning" decided that there must be other ladies out there
that want to face the 50's with verve and elan. She was right and the ranks have
swelled beyond anyone's imagination. Thousands of woman have joined The Red Hat
Society which has no rules except to have fun and wear a purple outfit with a
red hat.